I did the AOPA one in london as a part time instructor it did a good job in keeping me up to date on the JAA changes.
From the pure flying instruction it gave me one or two things to think about, the root of this was that some of the newer guys are teaching some things as an academic exercise and not teaching the practical aplication of the skill. As an example some of the guys had never considered tht steep turn as a way of avoiding another aircraft and some considered it to be an "aerobatic manoeuver".
I found that i got a lot out of the two days and well worth the fee that is tax deductable